TLPI Report to BJA Tribal-State Court Collaboration Working Group Report Held on December 5, 2012 Office for Victims of Crime Indian Nations Conference Palm Springs, CA Maureen White Eagle Heather Valdez Singleton Submitted to Bureau of Justice Assistance, April 11, 2013 Tribal Law and Policy Institute 8235 Santa Monica Blvd., Suite 211 West Hollywood, CA 90046 323-650-5467 www.tlpi.org www.WalkingOnCommonGround.org 1 TLPI Report to BJA Introduction The Tribal Law and Policy Institute (TLPI) is working on a grant awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) to provide training and technical assistance (T/TA) to tribal and state court collaborations. As part of that effort, TLPI held a working-group meeting on December 5, 2012 in Palm Springs, California, to gather together those with experience in the court forums and collaborations and hear from these experts about the most relevant T/TA needs for these forums, so that TLPI can gain valuable information on the best direction for T/TA delivery and resource development. Because this meeting was held in conjunction with the 13th National Indian Nations Conference, we took advantage of the opportunity to also give a presentation in the “preconference institute” format for the morning of December 5. The afternoon consisted of the invited working group only. This report presents the findings of the working-group portion of the meeting. In order to put the report in context, it does provide the historical context for tribal and state court collaborations and the obstacles and successes of collaborations. The recommendations extend beyond simply the T/TA needed, and provide insights into strategies that could be utilized by governments, agencies, and organizations to support tribal and state court collaborations and the resolutions of challenges faced. It concludes with specific actions that could be taken by TLPI under its current grant or recommendations for future T/TA grants. TLPI’s efforts are building upon the following previous work. Summary of Previous Nationwide Efforts at Tribal-State Court Collaboration In 1988 the Conference of Chief Justices established the Committee on Jurisdiction in Indian Country, which conducted a study of jurisdictional conflicts between state and tribal courts. The committee endorsed a project developed by the National Center for State Courts, called the Prevention and Resolution of Jurisdictional Disputes Project, which focused on disputes among tribal and state court systems. Tribal-state court forums were produced from this effort. These forums brought together leaders from state and tribal court systems in regular meetings to discuss common challenges and work toward improved relationships. The forums started in Washington, Oklahoma, and Arizona and then expanded to Michigan, North Dakota, and South Dakota with encouragement and support from the National Center for State Courts and the Conference of Chief Justices. The forum eventually spread to seventeen states. Some of the original forums continue today and others meet infrequently or not at all. 2 TLPI Report to BJA Additionally in July 1991, the Conference of Chief Justices hosted a national conference in Seattle, Washington. Attended by tribal and state court judges, attorneys general, and court administrators from around the country, the conference continued the Conference of Chief Justice’s mission of educating target audiences about the nature of jurisdictional conflicts, and promoting discussion and mediation designed to find common ground for resolution of these conflicts. Representatives from twenty-two states developed action plans directed toward reducing conflicts in their home states at this conference. Since 1992, the Conference of Chief Justices has expanded its mission to begin addressing criminal jurisdictional conflicts. There was recognition also of the need to engage federal courts and justice systems in this effort to increase the clarity of jurisdictional lines and reduce jurisdictional disputes. This work culminated in a national leadership conference held in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in September 1993, in which tribal, state, and federal leaders from throughout the United States met to develop a national agenda for improvement of working relations between tribal, state, and federal judicial systems. The conference, Building on Common Ground, produced the detailed report, Building on Common Ground: A National Agenda to Reduce Jurisdictional Disputes between Tribal, State, and Federal Courts, providing recommendations on jurisdictional disputes. The conference participants at Building on Common Ground believed that education must be a key component of solutions to jurisdictional conflicts. As the role, authority, and necessity of tribal courts are better understood, mutual understanding and recognition would result. Emphasized at the time was the difficulty in development and dissemination of information about tribes, tribal governments, and tribal laws. Additionally, it was recognized that full development of tribal court jurisdiction and competence in matters affecting tribal governance and Indian country is a positive step for all parties, including affected non-Indians and adjacent states. To that end, the leadership conference participants recommended increased resources and increased delegation and confirmation of jurisdiction by Congress to tribal courts. In 2005, the earlier initiative, Building on Common Ground, moved into a new phase, with the name Walking on Common Ground. A series of three national gatherings were held in 2005 supported by the BJA, Office of Justice Programs. These programs, called Pathways to Justice, were developed to provide insight on critical needs of the tribal justice systems and to develop strategies to improve communication and understanding among tribal, federal, and state courts; law enforcement personnel; and service agencies. Pathways to Justice: Developing and Sustaining Tribal Justice Systems in Contemporary America was published as a result of the first two gatherings that primarily reflected the views of tribal leaders. The third gathering, which 3 TLPI Report to BJA was based on a recommendation from the first two gatherings, brought together tribal, federal, and state judges to share equally in the discussion of challenges and the development of mutually agreeable solutions. The report, Walking on Common Ground: Pathways to Equal Justice, resulted from this gathering. A follow-up Walking on Common Ground gathering was held in 2008, providing a continuing opportunity for tribal, state, and federal justice communities to join together and sustain and review ongoing efforts to collaborate. There have been no national Walking on Common Ground gatherings since 2008, but there have been some regional judicial symposiums. A 2011 publication that documents the efforts made by tribal and state courts to collaborate, State and Tribal Courts: Strategies for Bridging the Divide, was produced by the Center for Court Innovation. Current Efforts Under a current project funded under the Bureau of Justice Assistance1 focusing on tribal-state collaborations, TLPI launched a re-envisioned Walking on Common Ground website (www.WalkingOnCommonGround.org) that gathers information relative to tribal and state collaborations with the goal of promoting and facilitating collaboration. In addition to resources, tools, and upcoming events in the area of tribal-state collaboration, the centerpiece of the website is an interactive map with collaboration agreements in several different categories (law enforcement, courts, child welfare, etc.), searchable by state or tribe. TLPI has also developed two Promising Strategy publications of interest to tribal-state collaborations: • Promising Strategies: Tribal–State Court Relations • Promising Strategies: Public Law 280 Both of these are available at www.WalkingOnCommonGround.org. The planning for additional resources for tribal-state collaborations necessitated a working group to assess current needs in the field, including obstacles, challenges, and successes. To that end, in December 2012 TLPI organized a working group of tribal and state judges who had been involved in state and tribal court collaborations or forums to discuss the current status of tribal and state court collaborations. The working group indicated that currently, the following 1 BJA grant numbers 2009-IC-BX-K004 and 2012-IC-BX-K001. FY 2012 Program: Tribal Justice System Capacity Building Training and Technical Assistance Program: Category 1, Enhancing Tribal and State Collaborations. 4 TLPI Report to BJA subjects need collaboration among state and tribes in order to adequately and effectively address the problems: • Wellness or treatment courts and mental health services, • Recognition of tribal court judgments, • Family law matters, • Truancy and other juvenile matters, • Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) cases, • Motor vehicle licensing, • Child support enforcement, • Enforcement of protection orders, • Recognition of customary marriages, • Probation or reentry support, and • Registration and management of sex offenders. Additionally, the group identified the need for relationships among tribes to be addressed. Tribal protocols are needed to handle concurrent tribal jurisdictional issues and recognition of another tribe’s orders. 5 TLPI Report to BJA National Working Group TLPI began selecting the working group by conducting outreach to each Supreme Court in states that had active forums in the recent past. Fourteen states were